Proud to be a BC Salmon Farmer

Menu

Who are these people anyway?

The tone of that simple question changes dramatically, depending on where you put the emphasis . In the case of the people behind the “Salmon Confidential” film, we have to say it this way: Who ARE these people anyway? With an incredulous, exasperated tone.

Why are we so cheesed? We’ve got good reason.The media coverage of Salmon Confidential has in general been very non-critical: particularly of the now non-professional ‘biologist’ Alexandra Morton and her videographer sidekick Twyla Roscovich. Media has generally avoided asking them any critical questions about the film and their reasons for making it.

But –someone has to ask: How far would these two go to make a film say what they like? Well, we’re starting to get a feel for how flexible Ms. Roscovich’s moral standards may be.

We already knew that in 2010, she and a film project partner were called out for offering to pay people to talk about their experiences in salmon farming while offering them complete anonymity – a highly questionable ethical decision particularly for people trying to share the ‘real story’.

“If they’re documentary filmmakers, they’re journalists…While not unprecedented – while there isn’t a written code that says they can’t do that – I think whenever you pay for information, sources are more likely to give you what they want to hear than what’s true.” (From a Public Eye Online article about this incident, archived here)

Of course, this post (http://salmonconfidential.com/misquoting-miller/) showing line-by-line the extremely selective editing of testimony within Salmon Confidential should be shocking to anyone who has watched this film, and been at all taken by the arguments within it.

Now there is word that the only interview included in the film that doesn’t align with the filmmakers’ pre-conceived perspectives was undertaken using a fake name and credentials. Word has come to PAA that Dr. Gary Marty was quite taken aback when he attended a viewing of Salmon Confidential to see that “Jean from Shaw TV” who had interviewed him some time ago, was in fact Ms. Roscovich. The interview footage appears in the film.

Sorry – do we need to say that again? Twyla, who made Salmon Confidential, identified herself as Jean from Shaw TV when she did the interview with Dr. Marty which appears in the film.

If that’s not unethical, we don’t know what is.

So, back to the first question: who are these people? Or more appropriately – Who AREthese people?!